Ankle-supporter.



PATENTED APR. 30, 1907.

R. F. LE MAT. ANKLE SUPPORTER.

APPLICATION IILED DBO. 27,1906.

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PATENT OFFICE.

OF COLUMBIA, ASSIGNOR TO PHILADELPHIA, PENNSYLVANIA.

ANKLE-SUPPORTER.

Specification of Letters Patent- Patented April 30, 1907.

Application filed December 27,1906. Serial No. 349,646.

To all wlwm it ml/Ly concern.-

Be it known that I, RAOUL F. LE M T, a citizen of the United States,residing in lVashington, in the District of Columbia, have invented anew and useful Improvement in Ankle-Supporters, of which the followingis a specification.

My invention relates to certain improvements in ankle supporters adaptedparticu larly for the use of athletes.

The object of my invention is to provide a device of this character inwhich the seam or stitching uniting the parts are located over thedepression in the ankle in the rear of the ankle knuckle or protrudingbones, thus avoiding the irritation or galling which occurs when theseams are located over a part of the ankle on which the supporterpresses or which moves with the use of the joint.

A further object of my invention is to provide, in a device of thischaracter, a soft nonirritating piece at its rear, adapted to bear uponthe cords of the feet at the rear of the heel, and another object is toprovide a more simple, cheap and effective supporter which is readilyadjusted to the contour or shape of the ankle and afford reinforcementtherefor.

In the accompanying drawings illustrating my invention: Figure 1 is aside elevation; Fig. 2 is a rear elevation; Fig. 3 is a rear elevationshowing a modification.

As shown in the drawings, my supporter comprises the upper or ankleportion 1, and the foot portion 2, having the openings 3 and i for theheel and foot respectively.

It is preferably made of a single piece of tion-elastic material,leather being preferred, stitched with a single seam 5 adjacent to the.ear of the ankle portion, and is laced over ;he instep of the foot andfront of the ankle, "or which purpose it is slit down the front at 5 andprovided with eyelets 7 adjacent to the :dge of the slit.

In articles of this character as heretofore :onstructed, the seam orstitching uniting i he upper or ankle portion has been located 11 therear thereof, thereby locating the cam immediately over the large tendonor rd at the back of the ankle. The enlargement and irregularity in theinner face of the supporter at the back of the heel usually produced anunpleasant effect upon that part of the foot which would be irritated bythe friction caused by the action of the foot.

In my improvement, as shown in Figs. 1 and 2, one side of the ankleportion is enlarged and the opposite side reduced, whereby the enlargedside laps over the rear of the ankle and is united with the oppositeside by a seam located over the depression in the ankle back of theknuckle.

In the modification shown in Fig. 3, the extension or flap 8 of theenlarged side of the ankle portion, is made of a soft non-irritatingmaterial, which is stitched thereto by a seam 10 also located over thedepression on the side of the ankle.

In use, the supporter is tightly laced on the foot and ankle to providereinforcement .for a weak 01' injured ankle, and the effectiveness ofthe supporter is greatly enhanced by eliminating the irritating seamover the tendon at the rear of the ankle.

The means for carrying out the herein described invention will bereadily understood upon reference to the foregoing description and theaccompanying drawings, and it will be appreciated that the parts andcombinations employed may be varied from the specific exempliiicationsthereof shown and described without departing from the spirit and scopeof the invention.

Having thus described my invention, what I claim as new and LettersPatent, is

An ankle supporter comprising an ankle part and a foot part havingopenings for the foot and heel and a slit and lacings in the frontthereof, said parts being .made of nonelastic material united by a seamlocated on the side of the supporter between the ankle joint and theback of the heel, substantially as described.

In testimony whereof I have signed my name to this specification in thepresence of two subscribing witnesses:

RAOUL F. LE MAT. lVitnesses:

N. S. FAUoET'r, RALPH WV. SIMONS.

desire to be secured by.

